Ok, kitties of the blogosphere, we need your opinions on this. Please. Our former alpha cat, Lydia, died last October, and since then Rori took over as alpha cat. No problems there; she's an awesome alpha cat and looks out for everyone, taking care of everyone and making sure they're ok.
Now, tonight we had the second rolling cat fight with a "visitor". Outdoor Fluffy Buddy came in, thinking maybe Starla was inside. Once he realized she wasn't in, he was fine exploring the food bowl and exchanging sniffs with Tabby and Smokey. I didn't shut the door because I didn't want him to feel trapped. He's one of the ferals, and this is his first time in a house since he was a kitten (when he was abused or abandoned).
He decided to walk into the living room from the kitchen, and Rori followed him. He went into the hallway, and looked like he was going to check out the litterbox (headed into the bathroom, where we keep it). That's when Rori attacked. Hissing, screaming, rolling cat fight. Fluffy Buddy escaped out the door, and then it was Rori, Tabby, and Carbon rolling around fighting. Rori and Tabby almost made it out the door, but I closed it just in time!
Ever since Rori's spay mid-January, she's been growling at outside sounds, and even sometimes at my husband. It's like her personality was swapped with another kitty's! And, yes, we're sure it's really her.
Any suggestions? Any ideas why this is happening or what we can do about it?
Thanks in advance!
Try some Feliway. If that doesn't work, go to the vet and see what they think about trying her on anti-depressants. It could be that something is stressing her out. She won't need to be on them forever but they do help to sort out the bad behaviour.
ReplyDeleteMaybe having the outdoor kitty triggered her and so she was upset at the intruder...then once all wound up she just attacked the other kitties? Having a multicat household is a delicate balance. I would imagine the fur would fly if I had just let Nigel walk the house. He's being kept separate to make sure he is ready and to supervise the interactions to make sure they are positive.
ReplyDeleteZippy acts the same way when a strange kitty comes near the house and will attack Sadie (but for some reason not Speedy). It's misplaced aggression, she wants to "get" that kitty outside but can't so she goes after Sadie.
ReplyDeleteWe would suggest some Rescue Remedy in the water bowls, if you want to try something external. We used it when we had our adult foster, Evie. She was quite aggressive, and while we had her confined away from Fui and Suey, Fui got quite anxious. It helped Evie to calm down a bit, and Fui to relax a bit.
ReplyDeleteGood luck:)